That’s what we take from the State of the Union. Though President Obama ranged far and wide last night — touching on everything from immigration and troop levels in Afghanistan to an increase in the minimum wage — what shines through is his determination to spend and tax without any serious restraint.

That is consistent with what he has done these past four years. It is consistent with his reading of his victory in the November elections. Above all, it is consistent with a philosophy that believes jobs and opportunity come from Washington.

That’s also why a sequester would be so bracing. Here’s how it works: If the two sides cannot come to terms on deficit reductions by March 1, automatic cuts of $1.2 trillion over 10 years go into effect.

Remember that this was Obama’s idea. Back when he proposed it, a White House fact sheet called it “a strong enforcement mechanism.” Obama was particularly enthusiastic because half the automatic cuts were to come from defense — and he believed Republicans would never allow that.

Now that the Republicans look as though they might pull the trigger, the president tells us a sequester is a “really bad idea.”

Let’s be clear: Automatic cuts would in some cases be just as the president says: “sudden, harsh and arbitrary.” A sequester would also be an admission by our political leaders that they cannot do their job.

Then again, every 12-step program for ending an addiction begins with admitting the problem. As that 2011 White House fact sheet so rightly observed, “[The] Sequester Would Provide a Strong Incentive for Both Sides to Come to the Table.” Time to give the president a taste of his own reform.